A Father's Determination
by Karimslover
Summary: Sentomaru and Kizaru are heading for Wano. Sentomaru has his own personal rescue mission to complete while also facing the ghost of his past. Can he succeed before the Shogun catches on? Spoiler warning for those not caught up in Wano.
1. Rough Seas Ahead

In the midst of a big storm a lone marine battleship found itself being tossed to and fro by the giant waves that surrounded the vessel. From above lightning shot through the sky as heavy rain battered the ships crewmen as they battled with the high winds in order to get a grip on the ships sails. It was complete chaos.

Inside however it was almost completely quiet, the only interruptions being the occasional creaking of the ship and the constant clicking of Kizaru's nail clippers.

The admiral continued his nail clipping only to pause every now and then to glance up from his desk over to his subordinate.

Sentomaru was seated on a nearby couch staring out of the adjacent port hole watching the storm go on. The man hadn't said a single word since Kizaru had mentioned they would be heading to Wano. Normally Sentomaru would be making his rounds on the ship making sure everything was in order or discussing strategic plans for the battlefield, but he just sat there with a look of worry. Kizaru himself was starting to worry about the well-being of his subordinate, that being said Kizaru returned his nail clippers back into the drawer of his desk.

"Sentomaru is everything alright? You haven't said a word since we departed from Mariejois." Kizaru asked.

"Oh, uncle…I'm fine, I've….Just been distracted, nothing to be concerned about." Sentomaru replied.

But this had made Kizaru even more worried. Sentomaru was clearly troubled by something.

"Sentomaru something is clearly bothering you. Does it have anything to do with Wano?" Kizaru asked.

Sentomaru stood up and walked closer to the window.

"Yeah, I've been remembering the day I left Wano. The day I left just so happened during a storm much like the one out there tonight." Sentomaru responded.

As Sentomaru watched the storm he remembered that very night. He had nothing but the robes on his back that day; his only mode of transportation was a makeshift wooden raft. Even as he stood there inside of the battleship Sentomaru could feel the coldness of the wind and rain chilling his bones. His neck hairs stood on end as he watched the giant waves move closer to the ship, as they closed in the waves gave the appearance of a giant mouth wanting nothing more than to swallow the vessel whole. Sentomaru was quickly reminded that on that day he didn't have the protection of the giant vessel as the waves slammed into the side of the warship shielding those inside from the sea's force. On that night Sentomaru had to battle the waves with only his natural strength as he tried to maneuver the small raft through the vast raging ocean. He had struggled for what had felt like hours before the ocean had finally consumed the raft and its occupant. The waves tossed Sentomaru around like he was a ragdoll, the young man had tried to keep his head above water. The last thing Sentomaru had remembered from that night before blacking out was the light coming from a lighthouse.

"I remember that day; you had washed up on the shore of the Marine base I was stationed at. You looked like you had been through hell, we weren't sure you were going to survive through the night from that big gash you had on your face." Kizaru added on.

Sentomaru traced a finger over the stitches from the bottom of his eye to the corner of his mouth.

"It was very hard to adjust to this new world, Wano from the day I left it wasn't as advanced as the outside world, your technology had me very confused I didn't know what to think of it all." Sentomaru said.

"And yet here you are today not only as the body guard for the smartest man in the world but also as the commander of the marine's science unit." Kizaru remarked.

Silence fell upon the room once again. Sentomaru faced Kizaru in utter silence before he finally spoke.

"Uncle, before we reach Wano there is something I need to tell you."

Kizaru looked on in interest.

"This mission, I know we've been ordered to only observe what has been going on in Wano at the moment, but…" Sentomaru paused.

He stood there tense. Sentomaru took a deep breath in before slowly exhaling.

"There's something personal I need to take care of in Wano." Sentomaru continued.

Kizaru raised an eye brow.

"That's very unlike you to want to break protocol, what is so important for you to go against orders?" Kizaru asked puzzled.

"I need to find my daughter." Sentomaru answered.

For the first time since Sentomaru knew him Kizaru's smirk faded into a look of shock and disbelief.

"Daughter?" Kizaru asked baffled.

"Yes uncle I have a daughter." Sentomaru said.

Kizaru stood there generally surprised, out of all the things he could have guessed about his subordinate, being a dad never crossed his mind.

"I had to leave her behind when I left Wano, she was too young to make the journey and I didn't want to put her in danger." Sentomaru said.

"Sounds reasonable, is she with her mother there in Wano?" Kizaru asked curious about the hidden past of his subordinate.

"No, things were really bad in Wano; I had to constantly work as sumo wrestler just to be able to put food on the table and unfortunately didn't have the means to afford a doctor. My wife passed while giving birth." Sentomaru said a hint of sadness in his voice.

"I am very sorry for your loss Sentomaru, is that why you left Wano?" Kizaru asked.

"Yes, on top of the poverty we also had to deal with Kaido and his men. I lived in the Kuri district which was overlooked by Jack from Kaido's headliners. He would come through for no reason at all and wreck the place just because he was bored or just wanted to terrify us. I left Wano in hopes of finding someone who would be able to free my country from the hands of Kaido and the Shogun or at the very least be able to help me get my child off of that island. I tried to file a permission form to go on a rescue mission to retrieve her two years ago but by the time it had reached Sengoku he had already stepped down from his position as fleet admiral." Sentomaru added.

"And because of that you would have to go through the process again." Kizaru stated.

Sentomaru gave a nod in agreement.

"Even if I was somehow able to skip the reviewing period I doubt that Sakazuki would warrant the request important enough to approve. I don't know why but something is telling me that my daughter is in danger. I'm running out of time." Sentomaru said feeling uneasy.

Kizaru faced Sentomaru with a serious look on his face.

"So, would you be willing to AWOL in order to save her then?" Kizaru asked concerned.

"Yes." Sentomaru replied confidently

Kizaru let out a deep sigh.

"Then I guess I have other choice, as admiral I order you…" Kizaru began to say.

Sentomaru tensed up thinking Kizaru was going to deny him leaving and readied a counter argument.

"To rescue your daughter." Kizaru finished.

Sentomaru shook his head not believing what he just heard.

"What?" Sentomaru asked.

Kizaru's grin returned.

"You can't be considered AWOL if you were only following orders. Let me take the heat from Akainu." Kizaru said

"Why are you going to cover for me?" Sentomaru asked confused.

"Since the day you arrived, you have worked nonstop serving the marines and world government despite the fact that you came from an isolated nation. Yet your strong will allowed you to not only adapt to this new world but thrive, I think it's time for us to return the favor." Kizaru said with a wink.

Hearing this, a small smile formed on Sentomaru's face. He bowed his head in gratitude.

"Uncle I can't thank you enough for this." Sentomaru said trying to restrain the joy he felt.

Kizaru placed a hand on Sentomaru's shoulder.

"Think nothing of it, you're a father you have the right to want to protect your child." Kizaru said with a warm smile.

The two's conversation was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Admiral Kizaru sir we are approaching Wano." Said a soldier.

"Guess that is our cue to get going." Sentomaru said as he headed for the door.

"Guess so. By the way you never told me your daughter's name." Kizaru said.

"It's O- Toko." Sentomaru replied warmly.

"O-Toko, But I thought you just said you had a daughter." Kizaru said confused by the name.

Sentomaru chuckled at this.

"I do but in Wano tradition girls usually have an O in the beginning of their name. I named her Toko because one of the definitions of the name means endless and she has brought endless happiness into my life." Sentomaru replied.

The two walked out onto the deck of the ship. The waves had started to settle down but it was still raining heavily. Up ahead the island of Wano could be seen through a small patch of fog.

Sentomaru stared at the island with a determined look on his face.

"Toko I promise we'll be reunited soon." Sentomaru said to himself as he looked on ahead to the outline of Wano.


	2. Home Sweet Home

It was half past midnight when Sentomaru and the others had reached Wano's waters. Using his geographical knowledge Sentomaru had helped steered the battleship through the maze of jagged rocks and determined what would be the best point of entrance into the country.

"It would be too risky to try to take the ship up the waterfall. The ship would be very heavy for the koi to carry and it is very noticeable. Our best option would be to dock down here and climb up." Sentomaru said.

Kizaru and the others gave a nod in agreement.

"Be sure to pack only the essentials and a bit of extra food. The climb up is steep and slippery so use extra caution." Sentomaru warned

With that the crew began their ascent. The climb was tricky and at times some of the crew would lose their footing but they managed to reach the top unscathed.

Once at the top the crew took a quick break to catch their breath. During that time Sentomaru filled everyone on the orders they would need to follow in order to not raise suspicion during their stay in Wano.

"It is very important that we keep our contact with the outside world to a bare minimum if any, in Wano contacting the outside is a serious crime. Only contact the outside if our situation is starting to look dire. That being said we won't be using the normal baby den den mushi, instead we will be using the smart tanishi, don't worry they function much like your baby den den mushi only on a smaller scale. Speaking of den den mushi the only other one that will be in use is Kizaru's black den den mushi to help us keep track of the Beast Pirates.

Also, whatever you do don't drink out of the river. The factories Kaido installed have polluted Wano's sources of water, if you need to you can either purchase fresh water from a vendor or wait until the end of the day for us to bring up a new stock from the ship. I need to add on that Wano doesn't use the Beri currency instead you will have to make your purchases using gold.

As a final note under no circumstances should any of you mock the shogun, don't even laugh unless he has given the order to do so. It is a serious offense punishable by death." Sentomaru said. He then dismissed the crowd

As Sentomaru finished his debriefing the soldiers began talking to each other, some concerned about how they would be able to survive the campaign in Wano.

From behind Kizaru approached Sentomaru.

"Now all we need is a base of operations, someplace where we can stay instead of having to go up and down that cliff to get to the ship and back." Kizaru advised.

It didn't take long for Sentomaru to think of someplace they could stay.

"My old home might still be standing; if it hasn't been torn down or reoccupied we can use it as our base. I'll go on ahead and scout it out." Sentomaru replied.

"Sounds good but you better hurry, the sun will be rising soon and we can't risk being seen in the open." Kizaru warned.

And with that Sentomaru suited himself in Wano attire and headed out.

The streets of Bakura Town were dead silent not even the chirps of crickets could be heard as a low fog rolled over the town. Sentomaru had only a lit lantern to help guide his way. Sentomaru's house was on the edge of town and as such he still had a bit of a walk ahead of him. As he passed by the empty streets Sentomaru began to remember the days when he was a child, the memory that stuck to him most though was the day he met his wife. She and her family had just moved into town one hot summer month, Sentomaru and the other neighborhood boys were in the shade battling beetles when they spotted the family.

"Looks like you got a new neighbor Sentomaru." Child 1 said

"They might be more than neighbors when I come of age." Sentomaru said.

"How so?" Child 1 asked.

"I overheard my parents talking one night about an Omiai between the daughter and me; I think their planning an arranged marriage." Sentomaru replied.

"Looks like it will be a bad end for you then." Child 2 said.

Sentomaru gave his friend a puzzled look.

"How so"? Sentomaru asked.

"The family looks like they run a tailoring shop and the women of the family all appear to have pink hair." Child 2 stated.

"What does that have to do with my demise"? Sentomaru asked confused.

"Didn't you hear about the family that was murdered by a tailor"? Child 2 asked surprised.

"I know about that my older brother told me the story"! Child 1 said enthusiasticly.

"I forgot where it took place but there was this tailor woman with pink hair that thought that her husband was cheating on her with three other women. She tried to look more appealing for her husband by dressing in a similar way as the three ladies. Well as it turned out she had murdered the three ladies and stole from each a kimono, sash, and hair pin. When she finally confronted her husband she asked him if he found her beautiful only for him to act like she was a stranger. The man wasn't her husband, instead he had been the father and husband of the three the seamstress killed and in the end he too was murdered in envy." Child 1 continued.

Sentomaru started to feel uneasy by the time his friend finished the story. At this point his mother walked up to him letting Sentomaru know that they were going to invite their new neighbors over for tea and that Sentomaru should go wash up. His friends looked on in worry as Sentomaru followed his mother home.

"It was nice knowing you." Child 2 said concerned.

As the families sat around the table Sentomaru was trying his best not to stare at the girl sitting across from him.

"Am I really in danger? What if this girl is just like the crazy tailor? Will she murder me if I just so happen to even glance at another girl?" Sentomaru thought to himself.

Sentomaru sat there quietly until his father spoke up catching Sentomaru's attention.

"Son don't forget your manners, you should introduce yourself to our guest." His father said.

Sentomaru stood up and greeted himself to his guest.

"Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you I'm Sentomaru." Sentomaru greeted.

"It's nice meeting you Sentomaru. This is my daughter O-Etsuko." The girl's father said as he gestured over to the girl.

Sentomaru looked over to O-Etsuko who looked like she was on the verge of laughing.

"Sentomaru why don't you take O-Etsuko to the garden and show her around while the adults talk to each other." His mother suggested.

Knowing that there wouldn't be any use in arguing Sentomaru did as told.

He led O-Etsuko into the back of his house where the garden was. All the while he felt on edge knowing that they were going to be alone together and that she might try something.

Once they finally arrived at the garden O-Etsuko burst out laughing causing Sentomaru to flinch.

"What is so funny?" Sentomaru asked baffled

O-Etsuko wiped a tear from her eye.

"I'm sorry but you look like a girl!" O-Etsuko said with a chuckle.

Hearing this caused Sentomaru to blush a deep red. For some reason every now and then someone would mistake him for a girl.

"I'd rather look like a girl than a crazy murderer!" Sentomaru retorted.

O-Etsuko stopped her giggling, a sly smile formed on her face.

"So, you think I'm crazy do you?" She asked.

Sentomaru gulped and before he knew it O-Etsuko had pounced on him, causing Sentomaru to fall backwards onto the grass. The two were nose to nose with O-Etsuko on top of Sentomaru. Fearing the worse the boy prepared himself for whatever the girl was about to do. O-Etsuko then proceeded to give Sentomaru a painful flick to his nose.

"Ow! What was that for?" Sentomaru asked as he rubbed his nose.

"I overheard you and your friends talking about the envious tailor. That is very childish of you to think it is real." O-Etsuko said.

"It's not real?" Sentomaru questioned.

"No, it's just an old folk tale told to remind people not to let their jealousy get a hold on them, and besides even if it was real you should not judge a person based on their looks." O-Estuko remarked.

"Oh, I'm sorry for judging you then." Sentomaru apologized, a look of guilt on his face.

"That's okay I forgive you." O-Etsuko said.

The two children sat in peaceful silence before they both busted out laughing at the silliness of the accusation Sentomaru had made.

Back in the present Sentomaru had found himself in front of his old home. It was a typical Wano home, nothing to fancy just a small house. Sentomaru made his way up the wooden steps which creaked under his weight. He hesitated for only a second before finally sliding the front door open and entering. The inside of the house was dark, the only source of light being Sentomaru's lantern. On the floor he found O-Etsuko's sandals still by the door as the day he left them when she passed.

"O-Etsuko I'm home." Sentomaru called out.

He knew there would be no answer but Sentomaru found comfort in it.

Then there came a set of footsteps rushing Sentomaru's way. An old lady charged from out of the shadows. Sentomaru had barely enough time to react as the old lady swung a broom at him.

"Get out of this house intruder; it is not yours to take from!" The old lady yelled.

She yelled while continually trying to hit Sentomaru. It had taken a while for Sentomaru to recognize her voice.

"Grandmother it's me!" Sentomaru shouted trying his best to avoid her attack.

The old lady instantly stopped her assault, stunned and confused by the person before her.

"Sentomaru is that really you?" Grandma asked baffled.

Sentomaru raised the lantern up to reveal his face.

The old lady looked like she had seen a ghost.

"I can't believe it your alive! We were worried that you didn't make it out!" Grandma cried out.

"Yes I was able to get out. I also have good news, I brought back help." Sentomaru replied.

Grandma didn't have any family ties to Sentomaru but the old lady had helped him out tremendously after O-Estuko's passing by helping the new father care for Toko. She had become family to both Sentomaru and Toko and right now she was on the verge of tears.

"Finally our prayers have been answered!" Grandma cheered.

However her happiness was short lived as she noticed that Toko wasn't with him.

"Where's O-Toko?" She asked.

"I just got here; I'm finding a base for the marines to use while we're here." Sentomaru replied.

Grandma had a look of dread; a sense of urgency surrounded her.

"You need to get to the flower capitol now!" Grandma demanded.

Before Sentomaru had a chance to speak up the old lady pulled out a newspaper from her sleeve and showed a recent article from the page.

"Child wanted for dishonoring the shogun. Reward for apprehension is set at 200 gold".

Sentomaru felt his heart stop as he saw the picture on the opposite page, it was Toko. Sentomaru's worst fear had come to light.


	3. Road Block

"What do you mean he left for the flower capitol?" Kizaru asked grandma.

Kizaru had been waiting for Sentomaru to return with an update about the base when Grandma had found the admiral. At first Kizaru did not know how to respond to her presence but once Grandma had told him she had been sent by Sentomaru he was able to relax. His peace had been short lived when she told Kizaru that Sentomaru had ran off toward the flower capitol to rescue Toko.

The two were currently standing on Sentomaru's front porch. Kizaru removed his glasses and rubbed the front of his temples while releasing a heavy sigh.

"That boy is going to get himself killed." Kizaru said.

"He's always been like that. After O-Etsuko's death Sentomaru would work nonstop usually collapsing from exhaustion before he even reached the front door." Grandma said.

"Sentomaru would do the same when he joined the marines. He wouldn't stop unless we ordered him to." Kizaru said as he remembered the nights he would find Sentomaru either in the library studying or on the brink of collapse at the training course.

There was a brief pause before Kizaru spoke up again.

"But knowing what I do now I can understand why Sentomaru pushed himself so hard. He's a good father." Kizaru continued.

Grandma nodded her head.

"He is. Sentomaru always tried his best to love and provide for O-Toko, even though he was still heartbroken over the loss of O-Etsuko." Grandma said.

From inside the two could hear the troops laughing and talking with one another.

"Glad to see that your men are adjusting well." Grandma said as she watched the soldiers relax.

"It hasn't even been one day and their already joking around, right now though I'm more worried about Sentomaru." Kizaru said.

"As you should be, since Shogun Orochi's rule he has convinced the people that anyone who leaves Wano is to be deemed as a traitor." Grandma said.

"And what would happen if they returned to Wano?" Kizaru asked.

"Depends, they might be thrown in prison and forced to work in the mines or executed." Grandma replied.

"What category would Sentomaru fall under?" Kizaru asked a bit concerned about Sentomaru.

Grandma lowered her head in regret.

"Sentomaru is a good man and an outstanding sumo wrestler. At one point in his career Sentomaru had made it into the final round to determine who would be the new Yokozuna. Many people cheered him on and in the end despite battling an opponent who was known for using dirty tricks Sentomaru won. We thought it was a turn for the better but with his new position Sentomaru would be obligated to collect tribute from the people of Kuri. Sentomaru knew from experience that the people of Kuri were struggling so he refused to comply. I don't remember the full details except that an argument ensued and that the referee who had watched over Sentomaru's match was found murdered the next day. The blame was put on Sentomaru claiming he killed the referee because he was going to accuse Sentomaru of cheating. The people that supported Sentomaru saw this as a betrayal and wanted to hang Sentomaru. The day after Sentomaru left Wano this further angered the people and Kyoshiro convinced them that Sentomaru was a coward. He said if Sentomaru ever returned he would be boiled alive!" Grandma recalled.

Kizaru started to feel anxious.

Meanwhile Sentomaru was running through the wasteland of Kibi. He wore a kasa on his head to cover his missing top knot. As Sentomaru trekked through the barren land many worrying thoughts ran through his head.

"What if I don't make it there in time? What if Toko is hurt?" Sentomaru thought to himself as he worried about his daughter.

Sentomaru was so blinded by his thoughts that he did not see the large figure ahead and ended up ramming the person from behind.

"Watch where you're going you piece of filth!" The person shouted.

The man turned around revealing himself to be Urashima. The larger man was not in a good mood as of late, he had been dishonored by the woman he had been trying to marry when she sliced off his top knot, along with this Mouse Man had completely abandoned him. Sentomaru let the shadow of his kasa cover his eyes to prevent Urashima from knowing his identity. In his former life the two men had been rivals up to the point of the final sumo match. Right now though, Sentomaru couldn't afford to waste his time with the Yokozuna.

"My apologies but I really need to get to the flower capitol right away. Would you be so kind to move to the side so I can get by?" Sentomaru asked.

"You were the one who ran into me so you should be the one to move aside!" Urashima ordered.

"Again I apologize for running into you but I need to head over to the flower capitol right now!" Sentomaru replied as he began to grow impatient.

"And I ordered you to move aside, now move!" Urashima demanded.

Urashima then gave Sentomaru a powerful shove. Sentomaru was lucky enough to avoid falling on his back but the shove was strong enough to send him sliding backwards by a few feet, knocking off his kasa in the process. Upon seeing Sentomaru Urashima seemed pleased.

"You sure have some nerve showing your face around here Sentomaru. Under normal circumstances I should be appalled at seeing your face, but if I am able to bring a murderer like you in my honor will be restored." Urashima said.

"You never had any honor to begin with; everyone in Kuri knew you were a cheater Urashima!" Sentomaru retorted.

Urashima's face turned red as he became enraged at Sentomaru's words.

"That's it! I'm going to tear your head off!" Urashima shouted as he charged towards Sentomaru.

Sentomaru stayed where he was, preparing to counteract Urashima.

"You know Urashima if you weren't so blinded by your ignorance you would realize that there is more to this world than yourself. For instance the third law of motion, for every action there is an equal or opposite reaction." Sentomaru said.

Urashima had finally reached Sentomaru but the marine grabbed the bigger sumo by his arm and used Urashima's momentum to swing his opponent around a few times before throwing Urashima a few feet in the opposite direction. The Yokozuna smashed into a large bolder knocking him unconscious. Sentomaru watched on as the dust lifted into the air.

"Let that be a lesson for you, now if you excuse me I need to be on my way." Sentomaru said as he wiped the dust off from his hands.

And with that Sentomaru continued his sprint toward the flower capitol.


End file.
